Problems in New York
1689 Words
Chapter Three
Problems in New York
The Gulfstream arrived right on time and they all headed for home, accompanied by their security detail. In the lake house, Diana asked Sam again to explain what was happening. He gave her a brief rundown of the situation and told her about wanting Caitlin, Angie, and Catherine to be back home. He reassured her that everything was going to be all right and told her not to worry. Shortly thereafter, the secure mobile phone rang. It was Mark.
“Destiny here,” he answered it. “Hello, Trinity. Any news?” He listened for a moment, responding in single syllable words. He ended the call with, “I understand.”
He looked at Diana and smiled. That was Trinity, an old friend of mine. His security firm is doing a job for me. Early this morning, they took over the offices in New York, and are checking out the security of the building. He confirmed that they saw the girls safely aboard their plane and they are heading for home. They will be on the ground soon and headed here in secure vehicles.
“His men have discovered several breaches in security at the office. Someone bugged Peter’s office and phones. Trinity took him to an undisclosed safe place, just to be sure. Even I don’t know where. They found similar surveillance in our offices as well, just as with our house on the lake. Trinity’s people are checking the rest of the building. They found the nest of spies on a lower floor, hidden in a secret room, and are dismantling the surveillance system now. His people include Federal Marshalls, and they arrested the bad guys and transported them to a Federal facility for further processing. It is unlikely they will see daylight for quite some time.”
“Have they discovered who ran the operation?” Diana asked.
“It is just a matter of time until they do,” he replied. “The company security personnel who did this have been similarly detained. Trinity is now handling all security matters. We are out of it for the time being.” He embraced her tightly and gave her a kiss for reassurance.
After an uneventful trip to the house, the limo took the ride down the driveway, and stopped at the lower door just a few minutes later. Sam wanted to see that his girls were okay as soon as he could. The driver took care of their bags, and he and Diana embraced them immediately when they got out of the limo. They shared a group hug and held each other very tightly. The girls sobbed with relief and joy.
Sam held them closely as their shadows acknowledged each other and kept up their scanning of the surroundings. Sam and the girls took the elevator upstairs.
“Sam, what the hell is going on?” Caitlin asked. “I have been so afraid.”
He embraced her tightly and reassured her, “Everything is okay now, dear Caitlin.”
“But what is happening?”
“Yeah, Sam. What is going on?” the others repeated the question. Before he could answer, the phone rang again. This time it was Peter.
“Hello, Sir,” Sam answered. “Yes, sir, I can tell you now. We know much more about the situation than we knew earlier. But first, are you personally safe?”
Sam nodded his head in the affirmative to let the girls know he was.
“Yes, sir. After we installed the new security system and the communications system here at the house, I wanted them checked out by a third party, someone whom I knew I could trust. The time you had me spend at Quantico both raised my awareness of threats and allowed me to meet some excellent law enforcement people, including Trinity.”
Sam listened for a moment.
“Yes, sir. The phones, even the secure line, the connections to the cloud, and hidden microphones covered the house and grounds. Naturally, I thought about similar issues with the offices, and retained Trinity to sweep our building.”
Diana and Caitlin could only hear Sam’s side of the conversation. He listened again.
“Yes, sir. Your office, mine, and all the others. The boardroom, accounting, and legal. Trinity will let me know when we are safe again. Sir, his Federal Marshalls found the location from which the bad guys were operating, and they are in custody. They will get the rest of them, I have no doubt.”
Diana and Caitlin were listening to his every word.
“Thank you, sir. You saw to my education, and it is paying off for all of us. For now, let Trinity take care of you, and I will take care of the company. I plan to call an emergency meeting of the board when we get the final report and recommendations.”
Peter asked about Caitlin, Catherine, and Angie.
“They are here with me and Diana, having just arrived. They traveled with their individual shadows and are safe. Thank you for asking.”
The call ended with another thank you from Peter, and Sam disconnected.
Sam finally felt some relief, knowing everyone was safe, and the company had suffered no ill effects. He put his arms around the girls hugged them tightly. They kissed him.
“Sam, what would have happened if you hadn’t had taken action in this situation,” Diana asked.
“Diana, dear, the people behind this wanted to destroy Global and take it over. We have prevented that, and Trinity’s Texas Rangers and Federal Marshalls will provide our security from now on. As soon as I hear from him, I will know we have won this episode.
“Will we always have security around us?” Caitlin asked.
“Only until this situation is normalized. The grounds will be covered and, we will have a new entry gate at the road, improved fencing, and Texas Rangers watching the perimeter.”
“What about our activities in the spa and the pool? Will we have to wear our suits now? And must we stop loving on each other out there?”
“I will discuss that with Trinity. We will work something out, believe me, but I think the high fencing and location will allow us to live as we please,” he promised. “I would never forgive myself if something happened to any of you because you chose to join me in this venture. If I thought any of you was in danger, I would resign immediately and come back here, never to leave again. You mean the world to me,” he told them with great emotion. They all snuggled closer to him, showing they loved him dearly.
“It’s all over, my darlings. I made sure of your safety and brought you all back to Texas under guard. We had security breaches here, and in New York. The security personnel you have been with are Texas Rangers, or ex-Rangers, with a firm whose head man is an old friend and colleague of mine. His code name is Trinity.”
“And yours is Destiny!” Catherine understood all at once.
“Yes.”
“Where did you meet him, Sam?” she asked.
“No one knows this, except Peter, who arranged it as a part of my education, and a very few Law Enforcement people, but I went through the FBI Corporate Academy at Quantico, Virginia. I met him there.”
“You never cease to amaze me, Sam,” she had said that before.
“I had them check the house and grounds here, and the place had bugs everywhere, the phones, the computer system, even cameras in strategic places. The bad guys installed them when they upgraded the systems. Trinity and his people removed them and substituted fake messages that sound like the real thing.”
“Then you sent him to New York, knowing what he would find there?”
“Yes, they went in at two in the morning and took over the building. That’s why they closed it and put it under lockdown,” he said to clear things up for her.
“What about the Federal Marshalls?”
“They work for or with Trinity and were under his direction. They knew just what to do.”
“Then it is over?” she asked cautiously.
“Yes, my dear. When we go back, we will be safe, the building will be clean, and the guilty parties will be gone.”
“I am so glad to be at home, Sam, with all of you. Our guy has taken excellent care of us once again.”
“Can you go back, Catherine?” he asked.
“Yes, Sam, as soon as this is over, and I have a chance to catch my breath.”
He asked Caitlin the same question.
“Yes, Sam, I am getting excited again, now that I know the building will be ours, and Trinity will be there. As soon as I do what I need to do here, I will be ready to go back.”
“Excellent! I am glad this happened now. We can rest assured that there will be no more breaches of security, and we can all do our jobs without interference.”
The secure phone rang again. Sam answered. “Destiny.”
It was Trinity. “We have a problem, my friend.” Sam listened to him.
“Yes, these people failed to ruin Global with their spy games, and you guys are now beyond their reaches. They wanted to eliminate you, Sam,” he said gravely.
Sam said nothing. He didn’t want to alarm the girls.
“That’s not all, Destiny, they also wanted to eliminate the former Chairman. You were both in their way. When they failed to eliminate him and couldn’t get to you, they targeted the girls. They were going to hold them for ransom if they could get to them. You got them out just in time.”
“That’s valuable information. I assume we are not out of the woods yet, then,” Sam said.
“No, you are all still in danger. I have put people all around the perimeter of the lake house, and on the approaches from the lake. Stay inside and I will let you know when the pressure is off. Chairman Crandall is safe and will remain so.”
“Thank you, my friend. I know we will get through this with your help.”
“I couldn’t let the bad guys get to my partner, now could I?” Trinity tried to add some levity.
“I don’t care about myself, my friend, I just want my family to be safe and happy.”
“They will be, Destiny, and so will you. We are close to wrapping this up. Give me a little time, and you guys will be able to resume your lives as you were before.”
“Thanks, my friend. I owe you one.”
“At least one, Destiny,” and Sam heard him laugh as he hung up the phone. Sam knew, it was going to be okay. His smile when he put the phone away, reassured his girls, and he gave them all a hug as confirmation. They believed he had taken care of everything. He thought so too. It was not over yet, however.
- Writer
